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Father Pat's Insights Into Ronnie Gibbons

Our visit with the Rev. Patrick Moloney in Loretto prison had given me plenty of fodder for my news story. The story revisited the evidence against him, the allegations of connections to the Irish Republican

The story revisited the evidence against him, the allegations of connections to the Irish Republican Army, and the problems his alleged IRA ties — denied by him — had caused him in prison.

But, more importantly, I wanted to visit him to talk about Joseph "Ronnie" Gibbons.

Moloney was already imprisoned when Gibbons visited Rochester in 1995 and disappeared. The odds were long that the Melkite order priest could provide me with useful information. Nonetheless, I knew he'd known Gibbons, and perhaps he could provide some nugget that might be useful in the search for the missing man.

Always an animated figure, Moloney became even livelier as he regaled us with tales about Gibbons. He recalled one time when Gibbons had somehow managed to sneak the two of them into a Broadway show through a side door and find open seats. This was not new to Gibbons, Moloney said. He'd clearly done it before.

Gibbons probably learned the trick from employees at the theatre, Moloney said. There were times when Gibbons seemed to know most everybody he met in New York City and, when low on cash, always found ways to survive in the Big Apple as if he had plenty to spend.

(I'll pause here to mention something I've yet to confirm - not so much because it will be difficult to do but because I always forget to ask folks who will know. Among the materials found in the car Ronnie had driven to Rochester was his address book. A friend of his later told me that the phone numbers included Al Pacino, Robert De Niro, and other stars and celebrities who lived in New York City.)

During our interview with Moloney, I asked for his thoughts on Gibbons' quest to get some of the Brinks money. I knew this would be sensitive terrain. Moloney continued to maintain his innocence, so he surely wouldn't say anything that could indicate inside knowledge of the heist or those involved.

Gibbons, Moloney said, may well have traveled to Rochester, secured some of the stolen money believed to still be in the hands of area residents, then disappeared into a life of leisure.

"He would be quite capable of disappearing to the Cayman Islands," Moloney said.

This didn't align with anything I'd heard. For one, Gibbons was fighting for shared custody of a daughter whom he dearly loved, and he would not have given up the fight, especially if he had cash to pay for lawyers. Two, Gibbons surely would have contacted his family in New York City and Liverpool, England to tell them his whereabouts.

I didn't think Moloney was sincere when he suggested that Gibbons was living the high life somewhere. Nothing since has changed my opinion. I think Moloney suspected the truth - that Gibbon was dead - but had no more definitive insight into the mystery than I did.

The end result of the interview with Moloney and the subsequent news story was that it kept Ronnie Gibbons in the public eye. I had hoped that someone would read the story and call me - or the police - with information about his disappearance.

It didn't happen.

Two years had passed since Gibbons disappeared and I didn't feel any closer to an answer. Nor would I be for years to come.

***

My apologies for missing my weekly installment last week. As local readers know, we had a tragic week in Rochester with the fatal shooting of a police officer and the deaths of a local couple who were significant philanthropists. Our newsroom spent much of the week producing what I regard as sensitive, thorough and reliable coverage.

(To read the initial coverage of the discovery of Ronnie Gibbons' remains, click here. To subscribe to notifications of this continuing narrative blog, click here. To read past installments, click here. Notifications will also be sent via my Twitter account @gcraig1. )